Milling apparatus



(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Shefl1. A F. M. MAGKEY.

MILLING APPARATUS.

"m a Patented Feb.5 ,1884.

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'2 Sh'eets--Sheet 2 F. .M. MAGKEY.

MILLING APPARATUS.

Paten ted Feb. 5, 1884.

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UNITED STATES PATENT Orrrcno ream; M. MAGKEY, OFLA ronrn, INDIANA, AssIenon 'ro HIMSELF, AND EDWARD MORF AND GUSTAV n. MORF, BOTH on CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

MILLING APPARATUS.

SPECIFICATION formingpart of Letters Patent No. 29$,C4'7, dated February 5, 1884. Application filed April 9, 1683. model) To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, FRANK M. Macuny, a

citizen of the United States, residing in La Porte, in the county of La Porte and State of 5 Indiana, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Milling Apparatus, of which the following is a specification.

To produce the best quality of flour it is desirable, as far as possible, to clean or separate the dirt, down, fluffystuff, and other impurities from the wheat before the berry is broken to any considerable extent, or any flour produced to mix with the impurities. It is also desirable to loosen and separate the mi ddlings I 5 or flour portion from the bran in as large and uniform-sized particles as possible, and also without breaking or pulverizing the bran any more than can be helped, because the coarse I grade of middlings can be much more perfectly I and easily purified, and if the bran is not broken up and pulverized the middlings or flour can be more completely separated therefrom without danger of having fine particles of bran mixed with the flour,

The object of this invention is to provide a means whereby these results canbe attained more perfectly than heretofore, and by cheaper and more simple machinery, and at an expenditure of less power.

Heretoforethe wheathas usuallybecn passed betweentwo opposing surfaces or stones provided with a dress designed to produce more or less of a grinding. tearing, or triturating action, or else it has been passed between two simple rolls running together. In the first case, flour is produced in considerable quantities before the dirt an dimpurities are loosened and can be separated, owing to the grinding or rasping action of the opposing surfaces, and inthe latter case the berry or kernel of wheat is simply crushed or flattened and glazed between two surfaces, which press it only on two sides, and the tendency is rather to embed the dirt in the middlings than to loosen and separate it from the wheat; and rolls have little or no tendency to rub off or remove the fine. down upon the outside of the wheat at its germ end and neither with the rolls nor with opposing surfaces having a grinding action can anything like uniformity in the size of the particles be-produced. Sometimes, also, milling apparatus having a smooth-surfaced or' metallic dress has been employed. Such apparatus has ordinarily consisted of flat or horizontal disks having peripheral corrugations, as shown in the Patent No. 223,056, to Jonathan Mills, or else of a frustum-roll and case having nearly vertical operating surfaces, as shown in the Patent No. 260,750, to Gratiot. In the former, in order that the centrifugal force may feed or carry the kernels of wheat out between the horizontal disks or the corrugations therein, it is necessary to revolve the disks at a very high speed, unless the dress or corrugations be made too short to do effective work, and in the latter. the same necessity exists to prevent the kernels passing by their gravity through the apparatus before it does its work, unless the'frustum be made of an impracticable length or height. The high speed not onlyheats the apparatus, thusgreatl y diminishing its durability, but also heats the wheat or middlings, thus occasioning great difficulty in the subsequent bolting and purifying operations, as heated material causes the meshes in the bolting-cloth to clog, and the heat also injures the flour produced. The great speed at which such apparatuses must be run, and'the fact thatthe grinding or'operating surfaces thereof must also be set closely together in order to do any effective work, causes great irregularity in their operation upon the grain, and prevents anything like uniformity in the middlings produced.

In the present invention I subj ect the wheat to a rubbing and rolling action between two conical disks having a smooth beveled dress or furrows, so as to produce no tea-ring or grinding action on the wheat. The effect of rubbing and rolling the wheat between these two smooth beveled dressed conical disks is to thoroughly loosen, separate, and rub off, the dirt, dust, down, and other impurities from the wheat andthoroughly cleanand polish it. The wheat, after being rubbed' andlrolled in this manner until the dirt and impuriti es are thoroughly loosened,'is then screened, whereby the impurities, together with such small portions of middlings or flour as may beproduced by breaking or splitting some of the berries, are separated from the wheat andconducted to a middlings-purifying apparatus, 1

then pass-the wheat between a similar set of I est portion or ledge to the deepest portion of conical disks, set a little closer together,where by the berries of wheat being subjected to a similar rubbing and rolling action are with very great uniformity split or divided into two parts along the seam of each berry, whereby all dirt or impurities in the seam of the wheat and elsewhere are loosened and rubbed off, and, passing thence over another sieve, are

separated from the wheat together with such small portions of the middling-s as may also be loosened, and conducted to the purifiers. By these two preliminary steps or operations all the impurities may be, by this means, very completely separated and removed from the wheat without producing and mixing with the impurities any great or material proportion of the middlings or abrading from the wheat any of the bran; and the wheat-berries will be found to be simply divided in half along the seam of the wheat, leaving particles of very uniform size and shape. By subjecting the thus cleaned and divided wheat to the ac tion of similar conical disks set still closer together, the middlings by this same rubbing and rolling'action will be loosened from the bran without materially cutting or abrading the bran, and each successive step or operation will tend to leave the particles of uniform size, which of course very much facilitates the purification of the middlings. Thetwo conical disks, of which the lower one is the run-- ner and cone-shaped, while the upper one is stationary and dish or cone-shell shaped, have their conical or operating surfaces inclined at a comparatively small angle to the base of the cone, so that the combined action of gravityand the centrifugal force will cause the grain to be carried properly through between the disks in such time as to cause them to efficiently do their work while running at such low rate of speed and degree of pressure upon each other (or the grain between) as to occasion no difficulty from heating the apparatus itself or the material being operated upon. I find by experience that better results may be produced both as regards uniformity in the size of the middlings and in respect to the capacity of the apparatus and the power'required to run it, by employing disks whose operating-surfaces have a pitch of about one in height to nine in diameter of theeone, and I would recommend the employment of such in practicing my invention. By so doing it will be found that the disks run very light and free, and the grain will simply be rolled over and over between them,- loosening the dirt and down,- and splitting or dividing the kernels in half as the highest portions of the dress on the two disks oppose or pass each other. The dress of the lower or revolving disk consists of curved furrows extending spirally fromcenter to periphery, the furrows being deepest near the center and gradually shallowing to the periphery. The lands between the fur rows Widen from center to periphery and in cline smoothly and gradually from their highthe adjoining furrow on one side of the land and the ledge being curved or rounded off into the adjoining furrow on the other side. The furrow being deepest at the center or eye, the grain can readily pass down along the furrow from the center or slow-running part of the disk before it is much operated upon or encounters much resistance. The upper disk is provided with a similar dress, except that the furrows are straight instead of curved, so each of the lands or furrows of the upper disk will lie across or oppose two of the curved lands or furrows of the lower disks or portions thereof, which prevents the lands and furrows 'of the two disks coinciding or fitting snugly together, and thereby causes the disks to operate with greater uniformity upon the grain, and to give it a rolling motion between them.

In the accompanying drawings, which form a part of this specification, and in which similar letters of reference indicate like parts, Figure 1 is a vertical central section of a de vice embodying my invention. Fig. 2 is an enlarged sectional View of the trampot andsleeve. Fig. 3 is a plan view of the bridge tree upon which the spindle or shaft is supported. Fig. 4. is a top view of the coping or outside covering. Fig. 5 is a bottom View of the same. Fig. 6 is a top view of the upper conical disk or reducer. Fig. 7 is a bottom View of the same. Fig. 8 is a top view of the lower conical disk or reducer. Fig. 9 is a top view of the sieve. Fig. 10 is a side view of the upper and lower reducers in position.

In the drawings, A represents a cylindrical or conical chamber inclosing the apparatus and constituting the frame upon which the parts are mounted, or to which they are secured.

B is the bridge tree upon which the shaft or spindle O is supported. It is secured to brackets or flanges a upon the interior of the chamber A by suitable bolts.

D and D are respectively the upper and lower conical disks or reducers. The lower disk, D, is secured fixedly to the spindle C, so as to revolve with it. The upper conical disk, D, is held stationary, and is supported from the coping or outer covering, E, to which it is secured by set-screws cl and hand-screws d, which serve also to adjust the upper disk, D, in proper position to the lower disk, D. The coping E is provided with an interior shoulder, 0, adapted to fit the exterior shoulder, 6, on the disk D, for the purpose of guid ing and truing the same. The coping E 'is secured to a ring, I), which itself is supported upon the flanges b, secured to the chamber or frame A. The ring Z) is provided with a projection, 12 on its upper surface, which fits in a corresponding groove in the base of the coping E, whereby the coping is properly centered or trued in position. The hopper F is provided with screw-threads, whereby it is secured to the upper or stationary reducer, D,

at its central opening, and thus supported.

G represents a dished sieve, arranged under the reducers D and D, upon which the mate to counter the stationary disk, and is dressed rial is thrown by the centrifugal action of the revolving disks. This "sieve is supported by a collar, which" fits around a cam-sleeve or 5 collar, 9 secured to the shaft G by a set-screw, 9. i The collar 9, whichforms part of the sieve, or to which the sieve is secured, is made of skeleton form or provided with openings 9*, through which the coarser material may fall into the hopper of the next reducer below. The cam or eccentric sleeve 9? is provided with a horizontal flange, upon which the sievecollarig rests, so that the sieve cam-sleeve supports the sieve.

H is a spring attached to the frame of the sieve near its middle, and at each extremity to the frame of the machine. This spring prevents the sieve from revolving with the shaft, 0, but permits it to yield or move slightly in either direction, so that the eccentric or cam sleeve is made to give the sieve a rapidvibratory circular motion or oscillation.

H is the dished bottom of the sieve, which collects the finer particles of dirtand middlings'loosened from the wheat by the action of the disks D D, and which fall through the sieve.

H is a spout or conduit attached at one side to the bottom H, for conducting away this finer material to the purifier. This spout is secured rigidly to thebottom,'and has the same vibratory motion as the sieve itself. K is a collar secured to the shaft 0 by a setscrew, k, and upon which the shaft and all.

mounted thereon are supported. The collar K is supported with a shoulder or flange, 7r, which rests upon a sleeve, 7:7, having a groove, 1.1", on itsuppersurface. Thegroove 7; is made wider than the flange k, so as to form a 40 recess for the lubricant. The sleeve 75* rests upon the adj usting-lever L, which is fulcrumed tot-he bracket Z, attached to the bridge-tree. The lever L is provided with an eye or hole encircling the shaft (hand its height is adjusted by means of the rod Z and threaded hand-wheel Z, supported on the brackctl on the exterior of the frame A. i

7; is aring encircling the sleeve k", and k are set-screws passing through brackets or ears on the bridge-tree, by which the shaft C .may be adjusted and properly centered in position laterally. v

M M arearched braces or frame-pieces secured to the frame A, and in which the shaft 0 hasits upper hearin The upper or stationary diskor reducer,D, has itsioperating-surftrce made of an interior conical or dish shape. At the eye a cavity, m, for the reception of the grain. immediately surrounding the eye, is left hollowed out. From the edge of this grain cavity radial lines or grooves m extend to the periphery, as shown clearly in Fig. 7. The material of the disk between these grooves is cut with a beveled surface, as indicated at Fig. 10, where the edge of the plateis shown. The lower disk or runner is made of an exterior conical form gradually increasing or wedging pressure from discharge the material downward from its pein the same way, except that the grooves or 1 lines are made curvilinear from the eye to the 7c periphery, as indicated in Fig. 8, and that the grooves m are made of gradually-increasing depth from the periphery to the center, in order to effect, the feeding of the grain. The dress is smooth-surfaced so as not to abrade or tear the grain. The runner-disk D revolves in the direction indicated by the arrow inFig.

10, so that the grain or material between the plates is subjected as the disk revolves to the lowest'portion of the grooves to the high est portion of the dress. The action of the disks is to give a rolling motion to the grain or material between them, so that the disk D revolves very freely and with little friction, and requires a comparatively small amount of power to drive it in proportion to the capacityof the machine. The upper disk, D, is somewhat larger than the lower 011e, so asto o riphery to the sieve below. Dy reason of the conical form of the reducers D D, and the fact that the lower one is the runner or rotary one, the centrifugal action tends to liftor throw the material against the surface of the upper disk, and thereby materially increases the capacity of the reducers to retain the grain between the platesthat is to say, the upper disk or interior cone surface opposes itself to the centrifugal tendency of the seed to seek the periphery in the rapid rotary movement given to the grain by the lower disk. Two or more sets of reducers D D and intermediate screens or sieves, am be arranged on a single shaft; butIthink for the operation of cleaning and removing the impurities from the wheat two sets are preferable, the lower set being simply adjusted or set close enough together to split or divide the berries in half.

The purifier consists of a cylinder or chamber, 0, provided with one or more revolving disks, 0, secured to a shaft, 0. The shaft ois journaled in appropriate bearings, and is driven by a pulley, P. The material falls from the spout or conduit upon the rotating disk 0 near its center. i The revolving disk'o has a fluted surface, and operates to distribute the-material in a thin sheet or spray from its periphery, so that it will be more sensitive to the action of the blast. Q is an arched pipe leading from the top of the cylinder to afan or suitable device for producing a suction through the cylinder. The air is admitted through ports (1 near the bottom of the cylinder. A stationary deflecting-plate or conical disk, 0*, is arranged above the rotating disk 0, to deflect the blast toward the periphery of the chamber 0. R is a funnel arranged below the revolving fluted disk. 0, for the purpose of conducting and delivering the material upon the revolving fluted disk 0 below; and Q is a dome below'said funnel, for directing the blast or suction up through the funnel.

The funnel It is preferably given a fluted or interior stepped surface. Two or more revolving disks 0 maybe arranged in a series.

T is the dischargcopenings, through which the purified middlings are delivered.

The reducers D and D, or their operatingsurfaces, should be made of iron or similar material.

The apparatus herein shown or described for purifying the middlings as they come from the reducers and screens I believe possesses certain novel and patentable features of invention, and, not being herein claimed, I expressly reserve the same for a future application for a patent.

I claim- 1. The combination, with a series of lower revolving conical disks or reducers provided with smooth-surfaced spiral dress and secured to avertical shaft, of a series of upper stationary opposing conical disks or reducers having a smooth-surfaced radial dress, and a series of dished sieves having a circular vibrating motion, substantially as specified.

2. The combination of chamber or frame A, bridge-tree B, sh aft 0, lower revolving conical reducers, D, secured thereto, and provided with smooth-surfaced spiral dress, stationary projecting flange 7c of the collar K, and thus form also an oil-receptacle, substantially as specified. p

4. The combination of sieve G, spring H,

, secured to said sieve and to the stationary frame, and a shaft and eccentric for communieating to the sieve a circular vibratory motion, substantially as specified.

5. The combination of under revolving conical reducer, D, stationary opposing conical reducer D, coping E, set-screws d and handscrews (1', hopper F, provided with screwthreads, whereby it is secured to reducer D, and chamber A, substantially as specified.

6. The combination, with the chamber A, provided with interior flanges, b,of ring Z2, provided with projection b on its upper surface, coping E, provided with grooved foot secured to said ring, upper stationary adjustable conical reducer, I), hopper F, secured to said refrom center to periphery, substantially as:

specified.

8. The combination of chamber A, coping E, upper stationary conical reducer, D, supported from said coping, shaft 0, under revolving conical reducer, D, secured to said shaft, cam-sleeve g", secured to said shaft, and circularly-vibratory sieve G, supported and operated by eccentric on shaft 0, substantially as specified.

9. The combination of dished sieve G, pro vided with open collar 9, shaft 0, provided with cam-sleeve g", by which said sieve is supported and operated, spring II, and dished bottom H, provided with discharge-spout, substantially as specified 10. The combination of chamber A, bridgetree B, shaft 0, collar K, rigidly secured to said shaft, and provided with flange or shoulder 7o, sleeve 76-, loosely mounted on said shaft, and provided with grooves k adapted to receive shoulder and leave an oil-receptacle, adjusting-ring 7c, brackets k, and adjustingscrews k substantially as specified. r

11. The combination, with the shaft 0, of the cam-sleeve g", secured to said shaft, and

provided with a horizontally-proj ecting flange 9 or shoulder, of the dished sieve G, and collar g, rigidly secured to the sieve, and provided with an interior shoulder or flange fitting over the flange on the cam-sleeve 9, whereby the sieve secured to the frame of the sieve, so as to vibrate therewith, substantially as specified.

Chicago, April 4, 1883.

FRANK M. MAGKEY. IVit-nesses:

H. M. MUNDAY, EDMUND ADCOCK. 

